The Green Belt Movement

While working with the National Council of Women of Kenya, Maathai developed tree planting as a response to problems rural women identified: declining fuelwood, eroded soil, unreliable water, and reduced food security. The Green Belt Movement grew from that grounded diagnosis.

Its approach used community nurseries and local participation rather than treating conservation as a project imposed from outside. Planting trees supplied tangible benefits while creating networks through which women could organize and teach one another.